rawmeat

Aeratron is the quietest when it is working. The problem is, there is a design flaw in Aeratron that caused its washer to come loose every now and then, especially when you wipe the blades. When loose, the fan gives off an irritating sound (noisy). The local agent can fix it within minutes but not before charging you transportation cost. Mine came loose twice in 10months. You work out the sums. Aeratron is energy efficient when it is working. the problem is, there is yet another design flaw. EMI/EMC. So, if the mains is kept on, Aeratron can turn on, off, increase speed, decrease speed, change direction... autonomously. So you have to keep the mains off when the fan is not in use, or it will turn on on its own. In a way, it is as good as not having a remote control. The above two are problems that have hit several fans in my estate where neighbours bought in a bulk purchase. And the local agent have no solutions to.

I have used master Lin for many years as mentioned in my posts years ago... my renotalk was set to my old email account and I didn't receive any alerts of all the messages here asking for his contacts until I came in here today and saw the mailbox.. I am not sure how he does his assessments as he doesn't have the usual tools that geomancers carry, but I can only say they are extremely accurate down to the very month... his charges are reasonable imho... he doesn't advertise and have regular following like me and my entire office... Anyway, I believe the geomancer you use are all fated.... The important thing is to find one you are comfortable with. When you are not comfortable, just walk away and treat the payment as donations, haha... exactly what I did last time.... But before you engage, it may be good to do some simple research on basics of geomancy tools to build confidence when you meet them. Some geomancers ask you to buy $$$ ornaments...happened to my uncle... some suggest you do unusual and inconvenient stuff...happened to me... Cecil Lim was one of my geomancer as well... Yes, I really had a lot of Geomancers over the years and I really trust a few of them... but I wanted to go on until I find one I am extremely comfortable with. The other reason was the kiasu attitude I have to eliminate human error. He provides computerised drawings, easy to make appointment, fast in replies, pretty accurate and easily understandable. Do note his calculation is slightly different from the rest of the geomancers as he uses a different calendar (like normal calendar to apply the calculations instead of some Chinese calendar) from the rest (according to my other Geomancers) when calculating... but that is for personal reading. When it comes to house feng shui, his assessment was consistent with the rest and his recommendations are very logical and easily implementable at reasonable cost and effort. Wayonnet's Grand Master Chen JunRong was also my geomancer. High cost but my uncle is a firm believer in him.... after he changed his fengshui for career, he turned from a motorcycle riding, boots wearing regular at construction sites to a director at one of the biggest MNC in Singapore. I am not sure if master chen is still doing it himself or he is leaving it to his other partners.... He was very accurate in personal assessment... I engaged him for my parent's home... You need to be focussed with Master Chen as he will ask you exactly what you want out of your feng shui...career, wealth, health, love, etc... and you need to make a choice.. if you ask for everything, you get little of everything which is like status quo unless your current is very unbalance and simply needs balance.

I've an unbelieveable situation. Probably my initial thoughts was wrong, but I'm now stuck by some tricks being played on me. I gave up on my 'wife' refuses to keep her promises to study for at least a diploma and started to spend all her time playing computer games, watching TV, surfing net, and buying branded stuff on her small salary. We went on to have our own boyfriend and girlfriend. This happened before our marriage, we found out about each other and realised that we still loved each other very much. So we made promises and got married. Now, this had happened again after marriage and baby, and it has come to a stage that we decided to file against each other for unreasonable behaviour (a lot more issues happened, e.g. neighbours, police, social workers were all called in to prevent disasters from happening).. The divorce had been at deadlock because she had repeatedly refused to state what she wants, and rather simply reject all my proposals, and wanted to drag the divorce as long as she possibily can while claiming all lawyers expenses from me. She also painted the picture to my family that I had been unreasonable in my terms, etc... Finally, she created another scene with my family and made specific demands. Like stated that she wanted to keep the HDB and refund me my CPF, custody, and stated how much she estimated to required to maintain a child. My family who treated her better than me throughout our relationship and treated her like their own daughter (even better than her own mother), believed that she was sincere, and ask that for the benefit of my child, to give in and end the divorce before the child grows old enough to understand everything. (It's better for the child to know that his parents had divorced, rather than his parents are divorcing and fighting). I gave in, and met all her demands, including giving 50% of the cost she estimated for the child maintenance, without any bargaining. But in addition, I wanted her to repay the loan taken from my family which was a significant sum. All these in preparation for the first mediation session. I also offered to withdraw my application("reasons") for unreasonable behaviour, in effect, using her application solely. Now, she's asking for 300% more in maintenance, not to repay my CPF, my family's loan, to pay for her lawyer fees, and on top of that, restrict my family and my access to the child to less than 2% of total time per week. I felt cheated, she is simply asking for more money and tricking my family into believing her so that i go into the mediation on lower grounds. My lawyer is doing nothing as she maintained that she wrote the reply in accordance to my instructions and that she repeatedly asked if I was sure to offer such a good deal and whether she was really sincere when offering that to my family before she penned it. The best part is that my family, who dotes her so much, believe that it was the doing of her lawyer, and she was really sincere in the offer, even after I showed them the lawyers' correspondence. I don't mind dragging the divorce for years, even till my deathbed, but everyday spent is bringing agony to my parents who had been subjected all the abuses by her, and everyday when i see my child, i feel pain bringing him to this world. If I knew it was going to turn this way, I'll rather swallow my pride and remain married, turning a blind eye to her activities and tolerate all the abuses. What can be done? Can she really and legally drag the divorce as long as she wants and bring pain to my child and family (and use that to hurt me?) and continue to use my child as a bargaining chip? Are there any laws to protect men against such abuse?

i was given this term recently when the ID firm i engaged for my reno spent one month doing rectification works and i guess got fustrated by their bad worksmanship and made an attempt for me to accept their poor quality works... lousy carpentry with panels damaged, poor installation (i even had to remind them to apply silicon on gaps, OMG) and when wood was damaged even before i touched them (holding holes gave way to weight of shelves) rectification works was simply to paste stickers over the damaged holes and drill new holes. windows with unremovable stains mirrors with scratches cracked tiles due to drilling by contractors but patched during cement wrong dimensions of false ceiling (more than 20cm) and pillars as a result my furniture couldn't fit.... all these were classified as acceptable contractor standards by the ID firm... would like to seek public opinion..... my ID firm is seeking final payment, I'm seeking rectification for all the shody works before final payment.... 50% of which were corrected by myself using my own money as I couldn't wait any longer... my flat has been under reno for 3mths already... i need to move in!

tame is durable and designed practically.. but i find them a little ugly, their after sales uncles r quite pro but don't really like the looks of their system especially the extendable poles that hang unevenly.. but it's really to singapore's standard, easy to use and won't damage yr walls. ezliving is pretty, but everything else sucks, parts hits yr wall hard and damage paint during use, need muscle power to operate, the after sales is non-existence less a short demo... genesis is like the ferrari of all, but the reliability sucks.. after sales is ok, effortless to use but it breaks down too often.. i rem there's another brand out there, probably can try that after my current one breaks down...

thought long and hard.... deliberating between Bosch HBN331E2J and Brandt FE811XS1.... in terms of function Brandt is the winner... clear cut functions and dummy proof... made in France, but cost $140 more with 1 year warranty.... Bosch made in don't know where (different Bosch promoter tells me different country, Korea, Turkey, blah blah blah, Bosch don't train their sales staff, haha), functions similar to Brandt but Bosch gave them fantastic nomenclatures that confuses even their own sales staff... But at $140 cheaper and with 2years warranty.... I bought Bosch...

insist on computer 3d always for someone who knows nuts about reno... that's my humble opinion I went to a famous ID company who claimed hand drawing is more accurate in terms of colour as not all colours are available on the software and that the enhancement by lightings in computer drawing creates a false impression. having undergone just basic training in photoshop, i was laughing in my head.... if you don't know how to use software, just say don't have lah.... but.. another ID from another famous company drawn the sketch for me free... no matter how i looked at it, i don't find the design nice and he was reluctant to do major changes.... as either i'm not paying him or he has to make big changes... i didn't engage both of them... i know nuts about doing 3D until i engaged my current ID (for a higher price than the famous ones)... and I really liked her designs drawn using computer, and you CAN adjust the lightings on request to show the colour impression at different times of the day, yes they're different but at least u get to see the different lighting effects, and amendments are so simple that we could finalise it in a day.... my ID worked thru lunch and dinner of course while i had mine, to do the changes, major changes as i added **** lot of stuff.... was at the luxury living fair last week and realised that my ID's standards of computer drawing is very different also... those that i saw at the fair are below standard, almost unacceptable in my opinion as the resolution and details were poor... my ID was at the exhibition also, but those on her laptop were impressive and she claimed that such details requires a lot of time that IDs cannot afford to lose as they need to get new business while managing current projects, for her, she sleeps less and have no life most of the time... so it also depend on yr luck whether yr ID is hardworking...

tan khon yong was the one that asked me to place a lot of ornaments in the house. that's why i didn't engage him again. he charges 3 times higher than most fsm, but he doesn't require you to buy ornaments, he'll provide the ornaments that he recommends..

Compiled my checklists are a busy month of sourcing for ID and gathering my previous renovation experience. Here're my shortlisting criteria for discussion. 1. Must have 3D computer drawings (not those simple type but elaborated types, go to any exhibition and you'll see the difference) - It's important to see such high resolution design as they're the closest (even though the actual will differ from that no matter what) to the actual. A good ID will spend effort on this and make fine changes for you. Without these (or using low quality 3D or hand-drawn) everything that can go wrong will go wrong, you may not notice it at all if the ID hid it from you. 2. Detailed Quotation with options. Not many ID are willing to provide detailed quotation with all options and would leave things out with remarks that they'll be catered later when other areas are confirmed or needs more discussion during renovation. IDs who're willing are experienced and knows exactly what they're doing. There are IDs who deliberate have options to make their quote low, while telling you the options maybe what you want but based on their experience were not required. bull****. 3. View ready works. A few IDs are not willing to bring me to customer's house to view carpentry with several excuses. If they're worried about disturbing customers, it means they do not have good rapport with them (or have too little or no customers).. or they're simply worried about their own carpentry works. An ID recently brought me to view flats that were still under renovation or renovated more than a year ago over a week, the customers were all friendly and wants me to view their flat.... and the flats didn't have top notch carpentry quality, but at least of standards... 4. Willing to meet at night, every time before contract signature. I'll only check on my house when I'm super free at night and I want them to react. If they refuse to me you know, they won't react to you at night after you signed. 5. Must be outspoken when talking about his area of expertise - managing projects and ID... not sales talk.... If he's only good in sales talk, get rid of him, he's a NATO (No Action Talk Only), if it's not outspoken when talking about managing projects and ID, get rid of him as he won't be able to control his workers well or relate his ideas to his workers. BUT I also omit ID who tells me they are experts in all areas of renovation, electricity, carpentry,etc.. bull****s... I'll omited IDs who tell me their prices are higher than average due to their good quality carpentry and worksmanship. These are bull****s.... The best carpentry I've experienced (best material with angling equipment, there're only a handful of carpentry workshop with full equipment that doesn't require the wood to be cut to make difficult angles out of plywood) was also the cheapest I had. and they were extremely professional. My previous ID had fantastic worksmanship, but when he did my friend's house, it was horrible.. why? new carpenter trainee in the house... but he rectified the defects beyond warranty to uphold his reputation.

fengshui for me is about making my life smooth in all areas.... i don't gamble, don't buy lottery, and i'm happy with my pay as long as everything is smooth.... i had rough patches and don't really like ornaments in my house, and had a hard time finding a fsm who could adjust fengshui w/o use of ornaments....

hihi, the fsm that i'm trying desperately to engage after the recent audit by chang is not in country and i need to find another fsm... chanced acrossed cecil lee's website but can't seems to find any reviews on him (other than those found on his website). has anyone tried his services?

i'm trying out chang cuz i heard he's one of the few who doesn't require you to put strange looking ornaments.... i was going to engage yulongzhi until his reputation went bad recently... and also the recent rumours abt his disciples.... chang is definitely no chen junrong who would balance everything to try meet your requirements of furnishing.. but junrong used ornaments... chang is also no master lin, who can tell you straight away the history of the house after assessing it w/o you telling him the past... bottomline is, if you want a beautifully designed house, better not find a fsm... once found, you'll have a dilenma... for me, i need extra assurance before i start renovation....

as of today, i'm almost in the same situation...... most of chang's recommendation are similar to my yearly fsm... just that chang is only concerned about the location of the items and not where the items are facing when at the location unlike my yearly fsm who was quite particular. one significant different was that my yearly fsm asked me to put something at southwest.... chang asked me to put almost the same item, but slightly less stuff inside, in a different direction. was just searching the net earlier, apparently, all websites says southwest and the mentioned that 'something' similar to my yearly fsm, still searching for the abstract version of that 'something' that chang recommended... can't find it on the net yet... my third fsm is only coming in june.. haiz... luckily that item is not those that requires nails or what... can move anywhere...

chang tian

since you've already consulted fsm before, you would know the directions of your floorplan. note them down and bring it to a third fsm for floorplan consultation w/o visit.. cost approx $100++ only... i've 2 pro fsm and one hobby fsm on the same flat... all 3 had similar recommendations... 1 pro added 1 or 2 stuff over another over the yrs but never contradict (directions drawn on the floorplan were exact)... the hobby fsm (my friend) w/o seeing any of the other's recommendation and just based on the floorplan with directions gave similar recommendations, just that the ornaments recommended were different but the rationale remains the same.... when he visited my house for CNY, he did insist that i replace an ornament that was made partly of plastic material, with another similar one made of 'tu'... just my experience and i know nuts abt fsm, that's why i pay for their services...

i have a good one but he does only wrought iron window grills... no longer doing aluminium

if you don't want to buy anything, you'll have to look for traditional fsm. those practise authentic fengshui and will not ask you to buy anything. but it's a lost trade.... 游龙子was one of them.. luckily i researched here, and went to verify today with my friend who's into this for the past 20yrs... he no longer runs the show, and his current disciples (not his sons) practice differently, even for his renown baby naming... so now, i'm searching again for fsm.... or if you don't mind pay near 2k upfront, you can engage chen junrong, his package includes everything... or master lin who charges peanuts for ornaments but he gives recommendations so fast (i wondered if he's really that good or simply anyhow say) that i worry even though they worked fine for the past few years. both of them did for my current flat where i junrong settled the reno, and master lin reviewed for all subsequent yrs, but i'm going for a change for my new flat...

Realised no one talked about Adeline Pang here... she appears on TV, in mag interviews, advertise aggressively... so.. have anyone tried her services and any reviews?

thanks... just went to research... he owes abt 96k in tax.... haiz.... dunno who to go to now

erm... income tax went after chen junrong.... so are you commenting on 游龙子？or chen junrong? just wanna clarify...

it's quite difficult to bargain here..... they'll say their quality is superior and his reno team is very popular and hot, need to secure their services fast to get his team.... i would prefer to view the quality first.. anyway, was only walking pass their counter during the recent show and needed a place to rest.

A close friend recommended me 游龙子 saying that he's well known (way before i was born) and is one of the few that doesn't require you to buy anything but rather do the renovation and decoration using wood, metal, etc.. intelligently.. any reviews or cost estimates? i went pass the shop last week, looks ok, but doesn't have the glamour of chen junrong...

your agent is already earning quite a bit from your transaction, it's definitely negotiable.... if you read the forum further, you'll find that most were just buying and the agents who represent the seller will sell at any price as long as buyer pays the commission as the few hundred dollars difference in commission means nothing to them.... for such cases, the seller loses because agent did not help him sell at a good price, the buyer who willing to pay the commission to transact at a low price also suffers because the agent would not give a **** about the buyer as the commission to "make the seller" sell and not to serve buyer. most agents know this trick and there's nothing you can do about it.....

finally, an id with good reviews. can someone PM me Darren's contact?

dream up an complicated real estate issue, any issue.... Send it to any real estate dispute resolution agency... SAEA, etc... i don't know if there're any others... dream up an even more complicated insurance issue, any issue.... Send it to FIDREC.... compare the replies and you'll know what i'm talking about. you can use simple issues like "my agent is not serving me well enough and answering my queries." You'll be shocked by the difference in standards and the governance. anyway, i'm not trying to bash all real estate agents, i'm more upset at the lack of governance that's causing the situation today.